Feel-good Friday #14
Because happiness is a choice: 3 ideas to comfort, console and bring joy.
Hello,
Who’s feeling good? It’s Friday after all. I’ve had a week where I’ve veered between feeling really positive and upbeat about life and opportunities and feeling floored by the news and current affairs. I expect I am not alone.
The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed I didn’t write a newsletter last week. Life got in the way, and before I knew it it was Saturday. I missed writing it!
This week I’m sharing some things that have brought me a bit of joy, insight and wisdom, as always. Remember health is wealth: the healthier and happier you are, the more resilient you are and the more able you are to deal with the vicissitudes of life.
If you like this newsletter, do share it to help me grow my readership!
Stay well — L.
Book of the week. Reworked: Putting health and happiness at the centre of your career by Dr Stephanie Fitzgerald. This smart thinking business/personal development book by a Chartered Clinical Psychologist offers a fresh perspective on work, teaching us how to actually enjoy work and find a path to happiness. Sounds good, right? Exploding some of the myths about work: how it has to mean long hours, stress and sacrificing health and happiness, Dr Stephanie encourages us to think about how we look after ourselves, our values, our sense of purpose and our motivations in order to get the best out of the working day, using four pillars of wellbeing. I think this could change a lot of people’s attitudes to and relationship with their work! I particularly liked the chapter on psychological safety, whereby you need to know you can speak up at work without your colleagues humiliating or rejecting you. Increasing psychological safety can lead to more diverse, empowered teams and better innovation. For more on psychological safety, watch the creator of the term, Amy Edmonson’s TEDX Talk here or read her book here.
Swedish death-cleaning. It’s been proven that clutter holds us back: clearing your physical space can make space for mental clarity and reduces the mental load. Taking it one step further, snooker player Ronnie O’Sullian recently pointed out in an interview that you can’t take stuff with you when you’re gone. He told reporters that he doesn’t want to keep his trophies, his cues, his natty waistcoats — none of it. In his words, ‘I’m preparing for death — it’s all going to go.’ And this at the ripe old age of, er, 47… But he has a point. We can’t take it with us. At some point I do think it behoves us to do the task ourselves, rather than relying on our family to do it for us once we’ve popped our clogs. Which is where Swedish death cleaning comes in — a strategy slash philosophy deployed in Sweden, it’s where old people and seniors embark on the task of clearing out all their stuff themselves in advance of their demise. Some may it see it as a bit morbid, whereas others feel positive about how this relieves loved ones of the burden of getting rid of decades’ worth of accumulated stuff. There’s even a book on the topic, if you’re interested. As my dad always says when having a clear out, ‘If in doubt, chuck it out’. Clear the decks for a lighter, freer existence. Be more Ronnie.
Quote of the week. Love this from Steve Jobs. When something is right, you know. When something is wrong, you know. It often takes guts to follow through…
I hope you’ve enjoyed this week’s newsletter. I am always interested to hear your feedback.
Stay well.
Liz